Introduction
The popularity of social media continues to grow with many people spending nearly most of their time online going through the posts and videos. Whereas, these platforms provide a means of accessing connection and entertainment, its effects on children are alarming. Quite often parents ask themselves is it safe for kids to use social media? The focus of this blog will be to discuss the various negative effects of social media especially to children, bringing out issues that are not very well known.
The Dangers of Excessive Social Media Use
Unrealistic Expectations and Body Image Issues
In my opinion, the negative effects of social media have some impact on a child’s perception of reality mostly in the negative way. While these are altered pictures processed and retouched to showcase on Instagram, snapchat among other platforms, this raises concern as people tend to emulate all that they see. This usually results in low self esteem, stress, eating disorders and other social disorders mainly to the teenage girls. It means children may develop some form of benchmark in relation to these images and develop mental illness if they fade against these set images.
Cyberbullying: A Persistent Threat
Am not saying bullying is only carried out in the school anymore. Another important problem is cyberbullying, which refers to harassment via the use of modern technological devices. While peer bullying is far from being ideal, cyber bullying can even pursue the child to his or her home environment; it is persistent. The negative effects of social media are amplified because typing negative, violating, and hurtful messages, images, together with videos, can go round the child’s close circle of friends. This is perhaps one of the worst negative effects of social media, as it results in a high level of emotional and psychological injury.
Exposure to Online Predators
Another negative effect of social social media is child endangerment through resulting in contact the child has with perverts. Child abuse is common where strangers with ill intentions may approach them with the aim of extorting money from them or worse still. One of the biggest dangers of internet usage is that, the unknown factor enables the perpetrator to make contacts with children under the guise of friend or associate. This goes well to show that there is a need to teach children various risks of talking to strangers on the internet.
Dangerous Viral Trends
These days there is always talk of some viral challenge or trend, many of which originate from social media and some are very deadly. As we know kids do not have sound judgement skills and they may attempt these stunts and end up getting seriously injured or even killed. This is where the negative effects of social media show their darker side, because children will engage in risky activities just to satisfy peer pressure and to gain fame online.
How to Protect Your Child?
As much as there are negative effects of social media, the idea of completely protecting these children from social media cannot be plausible. However, parents can try to minimise the risks which are involved in this type of living arrangement. Such as establishing the time bounds for use of computers and other devices, controlling their activity and explaining risks which can appear at access to the World Wide Web.
The Bottom Line
In the same token, social media is centred as a unifying force and as a learning resource; however, it is risky especially to children where it is used wrongly. These range from problems such as body image distortion to risks such as exposure to sex predators meaning parents ought to be keen.By teaching children about the negative effects of social media and guiding their use, it is possible for them to participate actively in social networks while avoiding the risks of danger.
